Daniel Cormier

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Daniel Cormier
Born (1979-03-20) March 20, 1979 (age 34)
Lafayette, Louisiana, United States
Other names DC
Nationality American
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight 235 lb (107 kg; 16 st 11 lb)
Division Heavyweight
Reach 72.5 in (184 cm)
Fighting out of San Jose, California, United States
Team American Kickboxing Academy (AKA)
Wrestling Freestyle Wrestling
NCAA Division I Wrestling
Years active 2009–present (MMA)
Mixed martial arts record
Total 12
Wins 12
By knockout 5
By submission 3
By decision 4
Losses 0
University Oklahoma State University
Notable school(s) Colby Community College
Northside High School
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Daniel Cormier
Medal record
Competitor for United States
Men's freestyle wrestling
World Championships
Bronze 2007 Baku -96 kg
Pan American Games
Bronze 2007 Rio de Janeiro -96 kg
Gold 2003 Santo Domingo -96 kg
Pan American Championships
Gold 2002 Maracaibo -96 kg
United States Championships
Gold 2008 Las Vegas -96 kg
Gold 2007 Las Vegas -96 kg
Gold 2006 Las Vegas -96 kg
Gold 2005 Las Vegas -96 kg
Gold 2004 Las Vegas -96 kg
Gold 2003 Las Vegas -96 kg

Daniel Cormier (born March 20, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist and a former Olympic wrestler. He is signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, currently competing in the heavyweight division. Cormier was the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion. As of December 2012, Cormier is currently ranked the #4 heavyweight in the world by Sherdog.[1] Cormier is currently undefeated in his MMA career.

Contents

Biography [edit]

Cormier is the son of Joseph and Audrey Cormier.[2] He has an older brother named Joseph and a sister named Felicia.[2] When Cormier was seven, his father was shot and killed on Thanksgiving Day in 1986 by the father of his second wife.[2]

Cormier was a three-time Louisiana wrestling state champion in high school and high school All-American. In high school, Northside High School, he suffered only two losses after his freshman year, both coming in injury defaults. He had a 101–9 record during his high school career and was also an All-State performer in football.[3] After high school he attended Colby Community College where he was a two-time junior college national champion. After Colby he transferred to wrestling powerhouse Oklahoma State University where he was an NCAA runner-up, losing to Cael Sanderson in the finals.

After graduating from Oklahoma State with a degree in sociology, Daniel went on to compete on five United States world wrestling teams and the 2004 Olympic wrestling team, where he took 4th place after losing to Khadjimourat Gatsalov in the semi-finals.[4] Daniel was also a member of the 2008 Olympic wrestling team for the USA, where he was named team captain, but did not compete due to kidney failure.[5] Daniel also competed and represented the Oklahoma Slam team in the now defunct Real Pro Wrestling league and was crowned a champion in the first and only season in the 211 lb weight class. While he competed in Real Pro Wrestling, he was also teammates with fellow Strikeforce mixed martial arts competitor Muhammed Lawal, who also was a season 1 champion, in the 184 lb weight class.

Mixed martial arts [edit]

He decided to pursue a career in mixed martial arts, in the Heavyweight division. He has trained with Cain Velasquez, Jon Fitch, and Josh Koscheck at American Kickboxing Academy.[6]

Cormier made his professional debut. Cormier traveled to Australia and fought for Xtreme MMA. He defeated Lucas Browne to win the XMMA Heavyweight Championship on July 31.

Just two weeks later he managed to make his first title defense of his career in August 13, against Soa Palelei. He won via submission to punches yet again in the first round, but broke his hand during the fight.

Cormier won his second MMA title by winning the KOTC Heavyweight Championship on November 2009 from Tony Johnson. He landed a solid punch on Johnson in the first round, causing his larger opponent to shoot in, but Cormier quickly gained the advantage with superior wrestling and Grappling and won the fight via rear-naked choke.

Strikeforce [edit]

Cormier signed an eight-fight deal with the Strikeforce organization and debut at Strikeforce Challengers: Kennedy vs. Cummings,[7] defeating Gary Frazier by TKO.

Cormier fought at the event Strikeforce Challengers: Johnson vs. Mahe on March 26, 2010, in Fresno, California against John Devine, Cormier defeating Devine by KO.

Shortly thereafter, Cormier fought Strikeforce: Houston event on August 21, 2010. Cormier defeating Jason Riley via submission punches with 1:02 into the fight.

Cormier next fought Devin Cole at the Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine event on January 7, 2011, in Nashville, Tennessee.[8] He won via unanimous decision, the first time a fight of his has gone the distance.

Cormier was to face Shane del Rosario at Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum on June 18, 2011, in Dallas, Texas,[9] but his opponent was involved in a car accident and withdrew from the bout. Cormier instead faced Jeff Monson and won via a decision. Cormier used his striking to dominate Monson on the feet and didn't allow for any takedowns, negating Monson's submission ability.

Cormier faced Antonio Silva on September 10, 2011, at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov, replacing Alistair Overeem.[10] In a shocking upset, he won the fight via KO (punches) in the first round, catching Silva with multiple hits to the jaw, causing him to collapse, and then finishing with two hammer blows to the face of the grounded Silva before the ref could stop the fight. Cormier later revealed that he broke his hand during the fight.[11]

He faced fellow finalist Josh Barnett on May 19, 2012, at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Cormier.[12] Cormier dominated the five round fight, becoming the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 49-46). It was discovered that Cormier, once again, broke his right hand during his last bout with Barnett, and will undergo hand surgery.

Daniel Cormier was rumored to face former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia in his return to Zuffa and Strikeforce debut, but on July 21, UFC President Dana White said "no Tim Sylvia is not with Zuffa".[13]

Cormier was scheduled to fight former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir on November 3, 2012, at Strikeforce: Cormier vs. Mir.[14] However on September 19 it was revealed that Mir was forced to pull out of the bout due to an injury.[15]

Cormier fought Dion Staring at Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine on January 12, 2013.[16] He won via TKO in the second round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship [edit]

Cormier made his promotional debut against Frank Mir on April 20, 2013 at UFC on Fox 7.[17] He won the fight by unanimous decision. Cormier added that he felt a lot of pressure for its UFC debut, that he felt tired and that it affected its performance in a bad way. He was still happy to get the victory over the two time HW champion Mir. As the current champion Velasquez is his teammate, he is considering a move to light heavyweight.[18]

Personal life [edit]

Cormier and his girlfriend at OSU had one daughter, Kaedyn Imri Cormier, who died in a car accident on June 14, 2003. He was also previously married to a woman named Robin.[2] On February 16, 2011, he and his girlfriend Salina had a son Daniel Ryan Cormier II. On March 4, 2012, Cormier and his girlfriend had a daughter named Marquita. Within the sport of MMA, he is good friends with Todd Duffee and current UFC Heavyweight Champion: Cain Velasquez (to who he coaches wrestling at the American Kickboxing Academy).

Championships and accomplishments [edit]

Mixed martial arts [edit]

  • Xtreme MMA
    • XMMA Heavyweight Championship (One time)
    • One successful title defense

Amateur wrestling [edit]

  • USA Wrestling
    • USA Senior Freestyle Olympic Team Trials Winner (2004, 2008)
    • FILA Senior Freestyle World Team Trials Winner (2005, 2006, 2007)
    • FILA Senior Freestyle World Team Trials Runner-up (2001, 2002)
    • USA Senior Freestyle National Championship (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
    • Northwest Senior Freestyle Regional Championship (2008)
    • John Smith Freestyle Wrestler of the Year Award (2007)
    • ASICS Tiger High School All-American (1996, 1997)

Collegiate wrestling [edit]

  • National High School Coaches Association
    • NHSCA Senior High School National Championship 3rd Place (1997)
    • NHSCA Senior All-American (1997)

Mixed martial arts record [edit]

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 12–0 Frank Mir Decision (unanimous) UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Melendez 02013-04-20April 20, 2013 3 5:00 San Jose, California, United States UFC debut.
Win 11–0 Dion Staring TKO (punches) Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine 02013-01-12January 12, 2013 2 4:02 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States
Win 10–0 Josh Barnett Decision (unanimous) Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Cormier 02012-05-19May 19, 2012 5 5:00 San Jose, California, United States Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion.
Win 9–0 Antonio Silva KO (punches) Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov 02011-09-10September 10, 2011 1 3:56 Cincinnati, Ohio, United States Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Semifinal. Replaced Overeem due to injury.
Win 8–0 Jeff Monson Decision (unanimous) Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum 02011-06-18June 18, 2011 3 5:00 Dallas, Texas, United States Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Reserve Bout.
Win 7–0 Devin Cole Decision (unanimous) Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine 02011-01-07January 7, 2011 3 5:00 Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Win 6–0 Soa Palelei Submission (punches) XMMA 3 02010-11-05November 5, 2010 1 2:23 Sydney, Australia Defended the XMMA Heavyweight Championship.
Win 5–0 Jason Riley Submission (punches) Strikeforce: Houston 02010-08-21August 21, 2010 1 1:02 Houston, Texas, United States
Win 4–0 Tony Johnson Submission (rear naked choke) KOTC: Imminent Danger 02010-08-13August 13, 2010 1 2:27 Mescalero, New Mexico, United States Won the KOTC Heavyweight Championship.
Win 3–0 Lucas Browne TKO (punches) XMMA 2 02010-07-31July 31, 2010 1 4:35 Sydney, Australia Won the XMMA Heavyweight championship.
Win 2–0 John Devine KO (punch) Strikeforce Challengers: Johnson vs. Mahe 02010-03-26March 26, 2010 1 1:19 Fresno, California, United States
Win 1–0 Gary Frazier TKO (punches) Strikeforce Challengers: Kennedy vs. Cummings 02009-09-25September 25, 2009 2 3:39 Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States Strikeforce Debut.

See also [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "Sherdog's Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings". sherdog.com. December 31, 2012. Retrieved 2012-12-31. 
  2. ^ a b c d "Daniel Cormier bio". Nbcolympics.com. 2008. Retrieved 2008. 
  3. ^ [1][dead link]
  4. ^ "ăƒ ăƒĽăƒ"ăƒƒă‚Żé€šč˛ŠWiki". Danielcormierwrestling.com. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 
  5. ^ [2][dead link]
  6. ^ [3][dead link]
  7. ^ Morgan, John (2009-09-07). "Former Olympian Daniel Cormier gets final TV spot at Sept. 25 Strikeforce event". MMAjunkie.com. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 
  8. ^ "Tyron Woodley vs. Tarec Saffiedine Heads Strikeforce Challengers 13". MMAWeekly.com. 2010-12-06. 
  9. ^ "Strikeforce in Dallas Gets Gina Carano, Overeem vs. Griggs, and del Rosario vs. Cormier". MMAWeekly.com. 2011-04-09. Retrieved 2010-11-05. 
  10. ^ Morgan, John (2011-04-09). "Overeem yanked from Strikeforce grand prix, Cormier to fill in against "Bigfoot"". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 20101-07-18. 
  11. ^ Whitman, Mike (2011-09-13). "Strikeforce Heavyweight Finalist Cormier Confirms Broken Hand". Sherdog.com. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 
  12. ^ "Strikeforce heavyweight tournament finalists Josh Barnett vs Daniel Cormier staredown pic". MMAmania.com. 2011-09-11. Retrieved 2011-10-30. 
  13. ^ Doyle, Dave. "Hand Surgery Is Next on Daniel Cormier's Agenda". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 
  14. ^ Morgan, John (2012-09-03). "USA TODAY: Strikeforce heads to Oklahoma City for Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir". MMAjunkie.com. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 
  15. ^ "Former UFC Champion Frank Mir Forced From Strikeforce Fight Against Daniel Cormier Due To Injury". BloodyElbow.com. 2012-09-19. Retrieved 2012-09-19. 
  16. ^ "Daniel Cormier next fight announced, welcomes Dion Staring to Strikeforce on Jan. 12 in Oklahoma". MMAMania.com. 2012-11-08. 
  17. ^ Tucker, Bryan (April 20, 2013). "UFC on FOX 7 Results: Henderson vs. Melendez". MMA Fighting. Vox Media. Retrieved April 21, 2013. 
  18. ^ http://www.mmajunkie.com/news/2013/04/ufc-on-fox-7s-daniel-cormier-admits-to-jitters-laid-an-egg-a-little-bit

External links [edit]
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